Glimpses
by ittybittymattycommittee
Summary: A collection of short drabbles centering around Matt Mason, featuring everything from brotherly bonding to human/alien shenanigans. Varying lengths, characters, relationships, and stories. Little to no chronological order. Rated T for possible violence, language, and character death.
1. The view

"I'm taller", Ben argued, looking between his brothers. There was a hint of smugness in his eyes when he met Hal's.

"By like an inch", Hal shot back flippantly. "Besides, it doesn't matter if you're tall if you don't have the right technique."

Ben rolled his eyes so hard they threatened to get stuck.

"There's no "technique". Now you're just making stuff up."

"Oh, there's a technique alright", Hal scoffed with superiority. "There's proper positioning, grip strength, all kinds of stuff."

Matt seemed to consider Hal's words, much to Ben's annoyance.

"Fine. Matt, if you want to be held with the "right grip strength" - pick Hal. But if you actually want to see anything of the concert, you sit on my shoulders." 


	2. The accident

"You can cry if you want to", Hal said, rubbing Matt's back. "I used to cry all the time when I got hurt playing lacrosse."

"It's ok. It doesn't hurt", Matt stated plainly, and Hal almost believed him. But looking at Matt's shoulder, he didn't see how that could be true.

"Where's Dad and Ben?", Matt asked, changing the subject. "They're gonna lecture me about not climbing stuff again, aren't they?..."

Hal couldn't help but sigh. Of course Matt was more worried about being told off than having to see a doctor.

"Maggie's getting them. They should be here any minute."

"And Cochise?", Matt added. His voice was small and Hal could tell he was asking because he needed all the comfort he could get, even if he didn't want to admit it.

"Cochise too", Hal promised, even though he wasn't sure their alien step-dad would be able to come. He shifted Matt carefully on his lap, bringing him closer to his chest.

"You're not alone, buddy. Don't worry." 


	3. The not-so-accident

Kneeling down in front of Matt, Deni pressed a tissue to his forehead.

"Hold", she instructed him as she moved to the scrape on his knee. Matt silently complied, frankly a little intimidated by Ben's girlfriend. She had a certain kind of badass wibe to her that commanded respect, even if it was obvious that she was a very kind soul.

"Man. This is deep. How hard did you try to kick that kid?"

Matt looked away embarrassedly, reminded of how Deni had pulled him away and he'd consequently kneed a brick wall instead of the jerk he'd been aiming for.

"You're lucky I happened to pass by when I did", Deni continued. "You could've done some serious damage. If not to others, then to yourself. Or the building. Your family's gonna thank me for saving both you and the roof over our heads."

"Please, don't tell them!", Matt finally spoke. 


	4. The peacemaker

"You okay?"

Ben looked up, more surprised than normally. He didn't get a lot of visitors on his rooftop hideouts. Especially not since what happened to Deni...

"Matt? What are you doing up here?", Ben asked, concerned both with whether something was wrong and how Matt had gotten up there.

"I'm seeing you, and you were up here", Matt answered casually, and Ben almost smiled. Oh, to give as few fucks as his little brother did.

"Alright. _Why_ are you up here, then? And don't just say 'to see you'."

Matt sat down next to Ben, dangling his feet over the ledge. If Ben didn't know him better, he'd say Matt was thinking his words through before saying them.

"I know you and Hal are fighting, and I don't wanna be part of that, but I saw you up here alone", Matt explained. "Just because you hate each other, doesn't mean I hate you too."

"I don't hate Hal", Ben said with surprisingly little hesitation. "I just don't necessarily like him right now."

"Whatever", Matt shrugged. "You're still fighting. More than usual... And, it's just-... I figured that's gotta be even rougher for you guys than it is for me."

Suddenly, Ben felt a lump in his throat.

"Don't worry about us, Matt." Ben hoped that sounded more authoritative than it felt. "We'd never drag you into our fights. You know that."

"I know", Matt replied flatly. He was staring at the ground way below his feet, seemingly unphased by the height. Again, he looked deep in thought. Ben threw an arm out in front of Matt, literally grabbing him and his attention.

"Hey. Whatever happens between me and Hal, we'll always love you-"

"It's not that", Matt interrupted. "It's not me. It's you."

Ben looked confused. Even he couldn't always keep up with Matt's reasoning.

"I don't want you guys to hate each other, because you need each other."

Ben opened his mouth, wanting to argue with that statement, but found that he couldn't. Not in honest conscience. Not even after everything that had went down between them.

Instead, Ben wrapped his arm around Matt and said the only thing he could think of to comfort him that he also knew was true.

"I don't hate Hal."

Those words actually comforted Ben a little too.


	5. The life-form

Cochise stared at the tiny creature in Matt's equally tiny hands.

"Matthew." Matt cringed at Cochise's use of his full name. "If this is an offering of sustenance, I am very thankful, but I must decline. My diet does not consist of many sentient beings."

"It's a baby bird", Matt stated, as if that alone explained everything. "I couldn't find its mom or dad, or Dad, so I thought 'Hey. Cochise is a great Volm dad. He'll know what to do'."

A choked noise escaped Cochise's lips as he tried not to let his emotions get the best of him.

"That is... honoring. Most honoring." He examined the small animal presented to him, trying to determine a course of action. One thing was clear, though. "I promise, I will do everything within my power to help you parent this creature." 


	6. The request

"With your permission, I would like to pick up Matthew and hold him at waist height."

Tom's eyes remained on his desk as his mind tried to process what Cochise had just brought up out of nowhere.

"You're... asking me if you can carry Matt around?", Tom asked, slowly lifting his gaze.

"Yes. I have observed you and others assist your young offspring in this manner. I understand if you do not feel comfortable trusting me with your-"

"I trust you completely, Cochise", Tom interrupted. "I'm just confused... Why do you want to carry Matt?"

"I was led to believe it is a bonding experience, rather than a necessity, seeing as how Matthew is able to walk without aid. As your mate, and someone who cares greatly for your offspring, I would like to bond with them in any way you will allow me to." 


	7. The vision (Part I)

"I don't want Matt to see me. He's still so little."

Tom nodded gravely at Rebecca. He remembered this conversation, just like all the other memories he'd been revisiting lately, and he still agreed with his wife. Matt had only been three when she'd been diagnosed with breast cancer. He'd been far too young to understand things like hospitals and chemotherapy. Even Ben didn't seem fully able to handle it all, despite being both older and very smart for his age.

"Don't let him come here, Tom. Promise me he won't."

"I promise." 


	8. The vision (Part II)

Tom's consciousness returned to reality with an increasingly familiar confusion. He'd learned by now this was some kind of message, a premonition, but what it meant he always had to figure out for himself.

Was he supposed to keep Matt from seeing someone?... Or maybe it was more abstract, like find your inner warrior? Maybe Rebecca was telling him to keep his promises, like he'd done with the promise he'd made to her that day?

Tom sighed and rubbed his temples. He was getting really fed up with quizzical aliens. 


	9. The vision (Part III)

"Don't let him come here, Tom. Promise me."

The air in his lungs rushed out of Tom like his body was physically repelling it.

"Here."

"Don't let him come here, Tom."

"He's still so little."

"Don't let him come _here_."

But Tom realized that he had...

Anne was blowing air into Matt's lungs, meaning Matt wasn't breathing.

Anne was trying to restart Matt's heart, meaning Matt's heart wasn't beating.

And no respiration or heartbeat meant that technically, strictly clinically speaking, Matt was with Rebecca right now.


	10. The worry

_**Author's note:** Set during 4x01 - 4x02._

* * *

"It's different."

Hal was careful to explain it without sounding like he played favorites between his brothers. "Ben went off on his own with the rebel Skitters. He can take care of himself. Matt's never even been alone before."

"I dunno, man." Tector appeared sympathetic, but skeptical. "I've seen that little guy do some serious damage. You're saying he can't take care of himself?"

"I'm saying he's never had to", Hal countered gravely. "He's a kid, Tector. When I was his age, my biggest fear was homework, not-", he stopped himself, unable to picture what his youngest brother could be going through at that very moment. He couldn't think about Matt or Ben at all these days without feeling like he was going to throw up out of worry.

"All I'm saying is that he's 11. He's too young."

Tector, who had been following Hal's reasoning up until that point, shot him a quizzical look.

"Too young for what?"

"All of this", Hal replied firmly. Still, there was a very noticeable hint of desperation in his voice. "He's too young for this whole damn world."


	11. The concern

_**Author's note:** Set during 5x01._

* * *

"I think next time, I'll stay at camp."

Matt tried to sound indifferent, hoping his heartbeat wasn't as audible to everyone else as it was to him. Only Ben seemed to throw him an extra glance.

It felt dumb having feelings about something that happened over a year ago, but the woods and the skitters brought on an intense fear of being captured. No matter how many times Matt looked around to confirm that other people were there - other people who weren't concentration camp leaders - he couldn't shake the feeling of being alone. Being hunted.

The thick suffocating foliage. The crackling of twigs on the ground. The sound of predators in the distance. Every sensation during the mission had poked and prodded at some of Matt's worst memories.

All the way back to camp, Matt's mind and gaze were a million miles away. He didn't even notice how Ben kept looking at him, or when Hal's team met up with them, how Ben nudged their big brother, despite their current animosity, and gestured towards Matt.

"What are you doing out here, pal?", Hal asked surprised, startling Matt a little with a hand on his shoulder. "You alright?"

Matt stared at Hal with a hollow expression, before his eyes began darting between him and Ben, who was standing right next to him.

"... What?", Matt replied, not having registered even half of what Hal had said. His brothers exchanged worried looks.

"Never mind", Ben answered for Hal, lowering his voice as he addressed only his big brother. "He's clearly not alright. We caught him on Dad's team. They were ambushed by a hoard of Skitters."

" _What?_ ", Hal asked. His tone wasn't many notches away from yelling.

They both shot a look across the group of fighters, directed towards their stone-faced leader. Their father.

"I want you to be on your guard with him", Hal ordered Ben. "Nothing major", he added before Ben could protest. "Just-... Dad's different. You can't deny that."

Ben seemed torn between arguing and agreeing, especially since it was Hal's words against his father's, but another look at the emptiness that was Matt right now and he found himself nodding.

Hal felt a flash of guilt for telling his brothers to be weary of their dad, but just as quick as that had been brought on, he remembered something his dad had told him over 2 years ago. Something that would probably stick with Hal for the rest of his life.

"You've got to do this! I don't want to hurt anybody, Hal. Least of all you, or Ben, or Matt."

Hal nodded back at Ben as he squeezed Matt's shoulder, more confident than he ever thought he would be with standing up against his dad.


	12. The responsibility

_**Author's note:** Set during 3x05._

* * *

Maggie let go of the reins for a second to tug on Matt's hood, like she usually did to get the kid's attention. He was being awfully quiet, and since he was sitting in front of her, she couldn't read his face.

"You don't need me to scoot back some more?", she asked. "There's plenty of room on the horse."

She got no audible reply, and that's when Maggie realized Matt's head was turned in Hal's direction, unmistakably. From the looks of it, his eyes were fixed on the back of his big brother's head.

There was something going on with Hal, that much was obvious, but even in his current state, he had argued with Matt and Weaver regarding Matt's safety.

Maggie grabbed a hold of the reins with both hands again, adjusting her grip so that she could hold on to Matt just a little bit tighter.

Man, the kid was still so small.

Deceptively small for the amount of responsibility he came with.


End file.
